Baba Yaga
by GrimmPandaMan
Summary: The world as we know it is a dangerous place. Rogue metahumans, monsters in the shadows, and more are becoming a rather commonplace thing. Meanwhile, John Wick is set on the path to become someone else. To become something else. To become a hero. (Will make use of crossover events and other information from the Arrowverse lore as needed)
1. Prologue: In Loving Memory of Helen

**Author's Note: Another story, yes. Sorry to all my readers that follow my other fanfics, I haven't been updating them since I focused on my original story for a while. Then I decided to go on hiatus for the original story. I decided that because I discussed with one of my best friends the premise behind this new story. John Wick in the Arrowverse. Enjoy.**

* * *

 **Prologue: In Loving Memory of Helen**

John Wick had a secret. And no, it wasn't about being a part of a group of assassins that have loads of rules that need to be followed at the risk of having a bounty on their head, their own special neutral grounds and mainly deal in special gold coins. All of that stuff was widely known in the underground circles, if you knew where to look and who to ask.

His secret in this case was more of by association. With his late wife, Helen. It's true that she died due to a serious illness. And she made sure to get a certain letter and a dog sent to John at a later date so that he would have something, someone, to love.

We all know the story. Which ends with John wiping out the Tarasov Mob, the Russian mob he used to work for, in cold vengeance. But the secret that I am getting at refers to Helen's double life as a hero.

John knew of it of course, and accepted it just as Helen knew and accepted John's old life, the one he gave up so that he could be with her. At any rate, Helen was active as a vigilante later dubbed hero in Gateway City, California. It was where she grew up and John moved to this city in order to be with her after they got married.

She was active for about two years before she passed away. She did not have any special abilities or superpowers but what she lacked there she made up for in special skills and high grade technology. All of her advanced equipment was courtesy of the R&D division of a company she started, the Atlas corporation, a company that she started with her husband and two extremely close family friends. She was known as the Huntress, sported a mostly purple combat suit and her weapon of choice was a crossbow.

Helen was rather successful in her steady albeit short tenure as a superhero, taking down drug dealers, slave traders, the occasional gang and mob from outside of Gateway City encroaching on then Tarasov territory and so on. When she was made aware of her terminal illness she took steps to ensure her husband would receive three things. A letter addressed to John, a dog named Daisy and one more thing.

John had just made it home with his new Pitbull, not yet named, and decided to be nostalgic and go through the package and letter Daisy had arrived in. It was when he was inspecting the cage he noticed something odd.

A hidden compartment in the bottom of the cage Daisy had been kept in. Sliding out the cover and looking inside he discovers a sheet of paper with coordinates written down and the simple message of "It's finally time, John. -All my love, Helen" scribbled down at the end.

"It's real…" John mutters to himself in the dimly lit and damaged living room of his home, his new dog lying down nearby and simply staring at him. Almost as if the dog could sense his mood. He had mixed feelings about finding such a message hidden away. "This is her handwriting… After all this time, she wants me to go to the den…?"

For it could be nothing else but the secret lair of the Huntress. When Helen was alive she was adamant that John never know where the exact location of her base of operations was, unless absolutely necessary. One could only guess as to why that time would be now.

Thinking to himself that Helen must have sent these coordinates with good reason, he resolves himself to head to the location of the Huntress's den. He grabs the keys to his Ford Mustang Mach 1, which he got back from Viggo's son at one point during his crusade, and then realizes something.

John Wick looks to his new dog. "I'm going to have to bring you with me, girl." Basically, John did not feel comfortable leaving his new dog all alone at home so soon. With that in mind, he takes the leash in hand and head off to his car, the Pitbull following him without issue. He makes sure to keep the sheet of paper with the coordinates with him as well.

After setting down his dog in the passenger seat he starts the car and drives off, after making sure to input the coordinates onto his phone.

The coordinates lead him and his Pitbull to a nondescript location in the middle of the woods. Still well within the state of California but in between one of the routes from Gateway City heading to Star City. Since there was no clear road or path leading to the exact spot of the den, he had to park the Mach 1 about 30 minutes away at a branch of The Continental that was conveniently set up on this route as a halfway point for resting.

So, if ever he had to keep coming back to this location, no questions would ever be asked and the personnel at the hotel may be contracted to provide smokescreen if ever need be. It was a bit of a ways away but at least his dog enjoyed the walk going over to the exact spot of the coordinates.

The den of the Huntress turned out to be a rather conspicuous building, black and purple in color that had two stories and only one way in or out from the outside. John did not bat an eye at the rather poor choice of color scheme for the building since, up until he literally bumped into the building he had no idea it was there.

The building had been cloaked. He was not sure how to deactivate the cloaking system at first but then after searching for the front door for a few minutes, and subsequently finding it, a security panel revealed itself at his touch. It required a passcode. He got it right on the first try. The right answer was the date he and Helen first met.

After entering the correct passcode into the security panel there was an audible click as the lock to the front door was opened, he promptly turned the handle and pushed the door open. As soon as the door was simply ajar he noticed the lights come on automatically. His dog started whimpering quite a bit once they were inside, it would seem that she was not comfortable being here in this place for some reason.

John knelt down and started petting his dog on the head and rubbing her at the neck and scratching behind her ears in order to calm her down. "It's okay, girl. This is a safe place. We're going to be just fine here."

And what a place it was. John explored every inch of the lair after setting his dog down on the bed specifically made for dogs. Looks like Helen had thought of practically everything.

There were two floors. The first floor consisted of the following: command center with supercomputers, spare armory in the form of a bank vault, one weapons chests and several racks of various weapon types strewn about the place, two display cases for combat suits, training area, fridge, cleaning tools, bed for a dog and lounge area. Second floor: infirmary, 5 fully furnished bedrooms, and a fully stocked bathroom. Basement: seemed to be used as a garage for various vehicles with a tunnel system that leads into several secret entry points of Gateway City. How does John know that the tunnel system was the way it was? There was a map on the wall explaining as much.

Overall, John was highly impressed with what he saw. The lair of the Huntress was as extensive as it was beautiful. He began searching through the the main supercomputer for anything of note, it was not not password locked or anything which he made sure to change first in the account settings.

There was but one video file on the desktop entitled "For John" and without a second thought he opened it for it could only be the true final message of Helen left to him.

The video starts up and shows Helen in a civilian outfit, she appears to be here at the lair, recording the video via the main supercomputer that John is using. John liked to think she looked as radiant and pristine as ever but this was during a time where her terminal illness was truly taking a toll on her.

She looked like she was lacking sleep, skin was an incredibly pale shade of white, she had lost a lot of weight and overall she looked like she was struggling to keep her focus. The very sight of his dead wife in such a state brought back some truly horrid memories of dark times.

"Hello, John. If you're watching this, it means I've finally passed on and you've found the coordinates to the lair. I won't waste your time with any sappy speech about love and moving on, you've heard enough about all that. No, what I wish to say to you now is about the world needing you. It needs you, John. To be a hero. The hero that I always knew you could be…"

And on and on the video message went. Helen talked about how he is and always will be a good man. He just made some bad choices in life but the mere fact he gave up the assassin life for her spoke volumes about his true character. About his true potential even.

But, all of that talk about his potential and whatnot was great and touching and all but what really concerns him now is the rest of the message. According to Helen, there was a lot of evil in the world. And not just regular threats.

People with powers, metahumans and other kinds of people with abilities have been coming out of the woodwork in recent years. He was aware of that. But beyond those kinds of threats there have apparently been stirrings of far more sinister things. Monsters, demons, and whatnot. All very real. All very dangerous. And Helen wanted him to do something about it all. No pressure. John has experience dealing with the supernatural after all, none of this was really news to him. It's just that Helen had driven home the point that the world needed as much help as it could get, and John Wick was one of the biggest guns it had to offer.

John however was reluctant, at first. He has killed many people over the years, quite recently as well. With the amount of blood on his hands, did he have any right to try and become a hero? Was he somehow still worthy of redemption? What right did he have to just turn over a new leaf, so quickly?

Only time would tell he supposed.

So yes, there was a lot of evil and darkness, quite literally and figuratively in the world. Of course John knew all that, it's just that he didn't really care about changing things for the better and saving people because it is the right thing to do because that just wasn't who he was. Or so he thought for many years, but according to Helen there was more to him than just a ruthless killer turned retired hitman. He was a good man capable of making a real difference in the world, she truly believed that with all her might.

He decided he would do this hero gig, for the foreseeable future though. If not for himself, the greater good, for the general public or out of the goodness of his heart then… at the very least he would do it in honor of his late wife. It was one of her dying wishes after all, that he step up and become a hero.

So he would do it. In loving memory of Helen Wick.

* * *

Before beginning any job or big task or what have you, John always makes sure to be fully prepared. Not unlike a boy scout in that sense. Although he would make for the most brutal of boy scouts going with that metaphor. But that is neither here nor there.

With that said, after having watched the final video message of Helen (which auto deleted itself upon reaching the end of the recording) John decided it was high time he named his new dog before doing anything else.

He supposed that the name does fit, considering this new dog of his shall serve as a reminder of the fact Helen wanted him to have someone to love. As a start, since her passing anyway.

John knelt down before his Pitbull and began scratching her under the chin. "From this point forward, your name is Elena." Obviously, as a bit of an homage to Helen. And he was pretty sure if he and Helen ever had a daughter then she would have been named that.

The now named Elena barks happily and jumps up to lay her front paws on John's shoulders, and proceeds to lick at his face with great fervor. John merely chuckles at her antics. "Alright, alright. You like the name, I get it. Settle down, Elena." He tries to calm her down with generous amounts of belly rubbing and whatnot.

The retired hitman finds some jerky for Elena, which he gives her right away because it may have been a while since she had anything to eat. And then settles her on the dog bed in one corner of the first floor. It was time to get to work.

First off he familiarized himself with all of the available weaponry on the various racks around the main floor. There were bokken, swords of various types, submachine guns, and handguns for a total of four large racks placed at strategic points of the whole main floor. He checked the condition of each individual piece, making sure they were in good condition, if the guns were fully loaded, if the swords had good enough balance and sharpness and so on.

It was just a cursory glance inside earlier at the vault but after opening it a second time for a better look, through a fingerprint scanner, he was able to determine for sure that it was a secondary armory with more heavy duty equipment such as a grenade launcher, live rounds and rubber bullets and various spare magazines for all the guns stored in the place along with all of Helen's old Huntress gear.

The very container was styled like a bank vault with a multitude of strong boxes storing the items away if they were not on a shelf or on the floor and ah yes, there happened to be a lot of gold coins from the Continental stacked all about the floor as well as stacks upon stacks of cold hard cash. So this served as a literal bank vault as well, with all of these emergency funds stored away.

Finally he checked the large weapons chest. It was a large red chest about 2.5 meters long, about 12 inches high and had a security panel on one side at the top. He actually found a folder in the main computer that contained details about his combat suit and custom gear for his use as a superhero. It also contained a text file with a hint to the passcode for the weapons chest. The hint simply said: "Our favorite moment, in our special place, on that very special day."

John entered the passcode and got it right again on the first try. The special day was the first date of when he and Helen had gone to their special spot on the beach (which has a designated area number) and the favorite moment refers to the 12 items of food they had shared that time. And yes, he had to enter the numbers in reverse order from what's mentioned in the hint because in terms of importance the day was most pertinent to the memory. Or so he had rationalized, and he was right.

With a beep of the security and a hiss of released air the weapons chest opens, mechanisms shifting with the cover opening in half separated horizontally, flapping open. There were these platform like things that rose up and then lowered to the sides of the chest and a larger platform underneath those that simply rose higher until the very edge of the chest. There was a handgun, a customized 1911, and a rather fine edged knife in the style typical of a fantasy rogue character on the very left; an assault rifle, sniper rifle and shotgun in the center, an AR-15, a WA2000 and a Kel-Tec KSG respectively; and finally, a retractable stun tonfa and a submachine gun, an MP7, on the rightmost platform. All of the gear in the weapons chest were of a uniform color scheme, mostly silver with a black trim, typical of the Atlas corporation's products.

Upon checking each of the guns he realized they were designed to take in live rounds as well as rubber bullets. He did not recognize the alloy that all of the gear was made out of at a glance, however, the folder in the main computer regarding his gear did explain that what was used in the production of all of these guns was an amalgamation of some meteorite that was found around the time Atlas was just starting out and carbon fiber produced by Atlas itself, the toughest carbon fiber in the market in fact.

Everything seemed good regarding the main gear he was left with so with a nod he pressed a button at the side of the weapons chest and it proceeded to close automatically, everything shifting back into place.

Lastly, before getting some food and a shower and calling it a night, John decided to familiarize himself with the combat suit that Helen had designed and made for him. Helen's old Huntress combat suit was still there of course, stored in one of the display cases right beside his.

At any rate, onto the combat suit of John. First of all, there was no mask or helmet or anything of the sort for the suit. John Wick does not need to hide his identity when working, it just so happens he would be working as a hero from now on. Helen had taken this into consideration when requesting such a combat suit be made for John, and ultimately she decided with his reputation and whatnot it would be more productive for him not to conceal his face.

There was form fitting body armor, which went on top of the dress shirt and necktie of the suit, a suit jacket that went over the body armor, gloves, a sheath at the lower back for his custom knife, a belt that had a built in grappling hook in the buckle, a holder for the retractable stun tonfa, pants, and combat boots. There were also magnetic holsters built into the body armor and pants for the sake of carrying around his guns. The dress shirt is white, the jacket, pants and boots are dark gray and the body armor, gloves and necktie are black. The jacket and pants also had some armor padding. That's it, all of the above made up the combat suit of John. It was all well made, practical in design and it just looked good.

The body armor was made out of a reactive kinetic polymer that would harden upon impact. Every other component of the combat suit, except for the dress shirt and necktie, was made from a leather and kevlar duraweave mesh. The material was light, and incredibly resistant while at the same time still being flexible enough for freedom of movement, based on what he knew and what he read from the files. And finally, the dress shirt and necktie were made using a method that made the Egyptian cotton highly resistant to cutting.

Considering how many custom jobs were needed to make most of the stuff in this den, as well as the construction and furnishing of the den itself, John was fairly sure his two partners and the head researcher of the Atlas corporation were in on this vigilante thing Helen had going on. Sure, he was aware that Helen was making use of Atlas funds to make all of this and whatnot but he never actively thought about her connections in the company that would be helping her in the endeavor. But it makes the most logical sense for it to have been their two other partners as well as the head researcher that would be the links Helen had to Atlas.

That is because Marcus Kincaid knew all about guns and other weapons and had underground connections for such resources through his chain of gun shops, Mad Moxxi (yeah, her legal name was changed to that quite a long time ago) had one of the largest information networks across the bars she owned and Leo was a bonafide genius when it came to all things science.

All helpful when working as a vigilante. Plus Marcus and Moxxi, being two of the main owners of the company, made it rather easy to hide the fact funds were being used in such a way.

John would have to talk to them all soon, regarding this new secret life he would be starting. After all, even if he didn't say anything they would know the new guy in town running around saving people would be him, especially considering the superhero name he would use. And they would of course help him the same way they had helped Helen, they are his friends after all.

But more on them in the future. Now that everything seems to be in order regarding his equipment, it was time for a much deserved meal and rest. Tomorrow, he would start his work as a hero. He decided it was prudent to start after having rested for a day because, with the Tarasov Mob wiped out there would be all kinds of mayhem brewing in the coming months if not weeks. Gangs and whatnot from the outside will want the now empty territory, and innocent blood will be shed. He would have to be there to stop it all going to crazy. Also, he was tired like nobody's business after having fought and killed an entire mob.

Besides, the Huntress has been declared missing by the official news stations and believed to be dead by the masses. The people needed to know that they still had someone to count on as their protector.

After preparing a meal of spicy ramen and some fresh squeezed orange juice, John led Elena to the biggest room on the second floor. And it was there that they called it a night.

* * *

John was currently making a call to the Continental branch at Gateway City. "Hello? Yes, this is John Wick. I'd like to place an order for repairs at my home…"

And so went the call. He couldn't get just anybody to repair the damage caused at his home after all that nonsense with the Tarasov Mob. The Continental does good work with all of their provided services and it only ever costs him one gold coin if anything because of how much his reputation costs in the underworld.

As Elena was busy sleeping after a hearty meal of dog food, John was contemplating his first move. Dressed in house clothes that was readily available to him in the master bedroom that he had chosen to sleep in, he was currently lounging in front of the main computer looking up case files in the Gateway Police Department's system, which he has direct access to through a backdoor portal courtesy of Leo somehow no doubt.

Make no mistake, John Wick was not what one would consider a hacker or even really good with computers. He knew about as much as a regular person that could use a computer. The design and ease of use of the various programs built into the system of the computers was not hard to figure out though. All of it was made in such a way for someone to be able to figure out how to make use of this and that, plus there were user manuals left in a folder in case you ever get lost.

John had skimmed through about a dozen case files so far, ones that were deemed cold cases by the police department for lack of evidence, being unable to find the culprit and so on. Working on any one of these cases would be a significant way to show the people of the city that there was still someone out there willing to fight the good fight for them.

The boogeyman of the underworld pondered on his first move quite deeply. Helen wouldn't be thinking about what course of action would garner the most street cred or whatever you want to call it. She would help out whoever needs it the most at this time. So perhaps he should be thinking along those same lines.

He needed to find a case that was urgent yet workable. Dire yet not without a glimmer of hope. Something that would show that he isn't in it to get famous or anything like that but that he is here to genuinely do good and help.

Something like...a string of missing children and missing pets cases that had happened within the past two weeks. Not long enough to be cold but they caught his attention. They were ruled to not have been connected but John had a feeling there was more to it than that. Considering they all happened at locations within thirty minutes away from each other in a rather small radius. He supposed that the police didn't see any connection because the children didn't really have much similarities between them and the pets, well, were pets. Pets go missing every now and then. Sure, it's sad and all but not exactly a priority of the police.

John realized he was going to need a bit of additional information if he was going to pinpoint the exact location of all the missing kids and pets. He could call any one of his contacts from the cleaners, they may know something. He may even call the information center from the Continental, it was the business that they dealt in after all and John would be given a huge discount if he were to do business with them. But at this point in time, John decided he would make use of his underground contacts from his old hitman life only when his one other avenue doesn't pan out.

Moxxi. Her information network was second only to the one run by the Continental and if he remembered correctly they did business together quite frequently in the form of exchanging information among other things. This way he could save his gold coins for a rainy day and to be perfectly honest he wanted to ask his friend for help on things like this as often as possible. He was just more comfortable with the notion of doing this with a friend.

Picking up his phone he went to his contact lists and quickly found Moxxi's name. He promptly proceeded to select the call option.

There was one ring. Then two. Three. Moxxi answered after that. "Hey, sugar. Pretty early in the morning for a booty call don't you think? Did you miss me that much, John?" Moxxi practically purred every single word she had just uttered.

John merely chuckles at her antics. Already used to such lines from Moxxi since he has known her for years and she always goaded him into talking about having sex or at the very least suggested it aggressively. Even when he married Helen. Or perhaps one could say Moxxi got even more aggressive in her flirtations, hoping to get Helen to join in. But anyway, he needed Moxxi's help for now.

"I'm afraid, this is about business Moxxi. But I do miss you though, it would be good to see you in person sometime soon."

"Awww, John… That would be nice, I'd really like that. Just you and me okay, when the time comes?"

"Sure, Moxxi, that's what I was thinking as well."

"Alright then, sugar. What is it that you needed me for?"

"I need some information. There has been a recent string of missing children and pets around a small radius in the city. I don't suppose you know anything that could help me with that?"

"Ohhh, come to think of it I did hear some recent whispers among my network regarding that. There's this local information broker that got drunk in one of my bars one night. Started complaining loudly about some psycho that wanted information from him about abandoned warehouses in the city."

"Hm, seems pretty standard. Why did the information broker complain about the guy though?"

"The guy asking about the warehouses was dressed in a dark cloak and paid the broker in gold coins."

"He was a hitman?"

"No, sugar. See, these coins were stolen. And the broker found out about this. The hard way."

"I see. This information broker got a name?"

"Charles Mason. You'll usually find him in the Sanctuary Street branch of my bar, every night at 6."

"That's wonderful, Moxxi. Thanks for your help. What form of payment would you like?"

"How about...you take me out for dinner and a movie every now and then in perpetuity? For my services now and in the future."

"You mean, like a date?"

"Yes, sugar. Exactly like a date."

Now John had to seriously think about this. Helen was gone and he has had time to get over her death. But the question was, was he ready to get out there again? "Well, before I give my answer I have to ask. Is Marcus okay with that?"

"Ohhh, he's more than okay with it. He and I split years ago, and he said if anyone would treat me right it would be one of his best buds in the whole wide world. So, what do you say, sugar?"

Well, if John had to start dating again he supposed it would only be proper he do it with someone he was truly comfortable with and who better than his best friend Moxxi?

"Sure, Moxxi. I would love to start dating you. Pick you up at 1:00, next Saturday?"

"That's perfect, John. Toodles~" And she ends the call by making kissy sounds at him.

And so now he had a lead to the whereabouts of the missing kids and pets. He also had a date set with the promise of more and more guaranteed but that was just something to look forward to at this point.

Before doing anything else, John decided that he should make one more call. This time, it was to Charon, the receptionist at the main branch of the Continental in Gateway City. "Hello, Charon. It's John Wick."

"Ahh, Mr. Wick, so good to hear from you again. And so soon at that. How may I be of service to you today?"

"I need you to get the word out. Gateway City is under my protection. No gangs, no crime families, and no conducting any kind of business without going through me first. Or else."

"Certainly sir. I assume you would like this sent through all available channels?"

"That's exactly right, Charon. Any ongoing business within the city at this time may conclude without incident. Will spreading this announcement cost me anything?"

"Three dozen gold coins shall suffice as payment from you, Mr. Wick. Will that be all, sir?"

"That will be all for now, Charon. Thank you." And John ends the call.

It was still rather early in the day. John had a lot of time to relax and pass the time before heading out later tonight.

So he spent the next several hours patching up the worst of his wounds, eating, sleeping, taking care of his dog and he even got some target practice in.

By 5:00 PM he decided it was time to take a shower and then finally suit up.

After putting on his suit he picked out the gear he would be bringing with him. The dagger and the stun tonfa were obviously going to be brought with him every time he went out into the field.

The 1911 was another sure pick every time. And under the assumption he would only come across one culprit for the entire thing he picked the shotgun and assault rifle just in case he needed the fire power. The assault rifle would be loaded with live rounds while all the other guns would be packing rubber bullets. Can never tell when something could go sideways with a mission, and he needed to be ready for just about anything. Lastly, he made sure to pack some C4, one can never go wrong with packing explosives in his line of work. Even if that line of work is the hero business now.

He next went down into the basement area of the den, where all the vehicles Helen left there and the tunnel system were located. There were three cars available for his use but he ignored them for now as he needed both speed and maneuverability in this case for maximum efficiency, plus he didn't have to worry about bringing anybody else with him at this time.

So he chose the only motorbike available in the whole basement, the customized Dodge Tomahawk. He put the C4 in the trunk, got on the bike, started it up and proceeded to drive towards the exit. The sensors recognized the movement and the large doors opened automatically for his passage.

John had more or less memorized the map of the tunnel system beforehand and had worked out the best route for heading to Sanctuary Street and onto Moxxi's bar.

Parking the Tomahawk with the rest of the motorbikes, John gets off the bike and studies the place. Marking exits mentally and taking note of the clientele and whatnot.

He was not even being given any strange looks because Gateway City has seen its fair share of oddly dressed individuals, people armed to the teeth at any given time of the day and other stranger things so often that the citizens have just come to accept it all as a commonplace thing for the city.

John walks into the bar and takes in the whole room within but mere moments. He works out that the information broker, Charles Mason, is doing business by the bar, seated to the far right.

Casually, the newly minted vigilante takes a seat next to him and orders some scotch, on the rocks. "Charles Mason?" He asks while taking a sip of his drink and looking straight ahead.

The guy he just questioned looks at him warily and is immediately worried by the amount of gear he's packing. "Who's asking?"

John downs the rest of his drink and turns to the information broker and looks him straight in the eye before answering. "John Wick."

Charles's eyes widen in alarm and he makes a run for it immediately, having thought of the worst possible reason for **the** John Wick to have come here for him.

John could only sigh at first at this development. "I should have expected really. Of course he would know of me, and of course he would get spooked when I didn't explain what I wanted. Oh well."

And so he chases after Charles, easily catching up with him despite all the weight he was carrying and despite the broker's head start. By luck or by design, Charles is soon cornered in an alleyway with a dead end.

"I don't know what I've done, but I won't go down quietly!" Charles pulls a Desert Eagle out from under his jacket and begins shooting at John.

In response John merely walks toward the information broker, not paying any mind to all the shots that are making contact on his torso. Within moments, Charles has emptied the entire magazine of the Desert Eagle and throws it at John.

The retired hitman catches the gun right before it hits him square in the face and then tosses it aside. He has now reached about a foot away from the information broker. "I'm not here to kill you, Charles."

"Bullshit!" Charles pulls a knife out from somewhere on his person and begins attacking the would be superhero.

The broker strikes coming in from the right. John takes a single step back to dodge. A stab comes in aiming for John's head but he blocks it by deflecting the blow at the forearm. The broker shows a surprising amount of skill and releases the knife, catches it with his other hand and swipes to the side catching John at the gut. But no damage is done to John's suit.

John does jump back a bit and takes a moment to let the force from the blow dissipate. Charles charges in, swinging wildly for several moments, but John has now drawn his own dagger and catches each blow with his own blade. Soon enough the broker tries to mix it up with some punches and kicks which are either dodged, blocked or deflected.

About 5 minutes into the exchange their blades cross for the nth time and Charles's knife shatters from the impact. John sheathes his dagger soon after.

It seems for a moment that Charles is ready to give up, or at least talk this out calmly as he raises his hands in surrender but then he throws a sucker punch right at Wick's jaw.

John has had enough by this point. He proceeds to up his pace and smashes his fist to the broker's gut, doubling him over and then knee strikes his face. Catching him before he falls to the ground, he proceeds to punch the damn fool over and over again in the face.

"I. Am. Not. Here. To. Kill. You." Each word was followed by a punch to the face.

"Alright, alright! I get it! Just please, stop hitting me!" John stops as soon as he hears this.

"I need information. I'm even willing to give payment for it, despite this...misunderstanding." John reasons, and pulls out a stack of bills. Several hundred dollar bills.

"That's great pal, what do you wanna know?"

"The psycho you complained about one night, the one who asked about abandoned warehouses in the city. Where can I find him?"

And so Charles gave him a location, he dropped the guy onto the ground once he had what he needed and dropped the cash next to his head. "Pleasure doing business with you, Charles. See you around."

John Wick made it back to his bike unimpeded, and he swiftly started making his way to the location Charles had given him. There were kids and animals to save.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Decided to end the prologue here because I want to post it already and I do not want to rush when writing the scenes at the warehouse when John confronts the kidnapper. Worthy of note I suppose are all the Borderlands references I have included in this fic so far: Atlas corporation, Marcus, Moxxi, the bank vault storage thing and the weapons chest (although imagine mine with bigger dimensions than the one ingame for Borderlands 2, I hope the measurements I specified help with that) and I think that covers all of it. If I failed to mention a reference at this point, my bad. I do so love the Borderlands series though, hence making use of certain things and characters from it. Anyway, belated merry Christmas from the Philippines dear readers. Happy holidays and I hope you enjoyed. Next chapter will be out next month at the latest I think.**

 **As of 02/13/2020 I have made some minor edits after proof reading this prologue.**


	2. Chapter 1: John vs a Warlock

**Author's Note: This chapter update is coming in super late but I have decided to focus on working on this story for now. Thank you to all who will read this.**

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Time was of the essence. Whoever kidnapped all of those poor children and pets obviously isn't planning anything nice. The culprit could be anything from a mass serial killer to a complete sicko for all John knew. He had to get to that abandoned warehouse fast. Speed limits be damned.

The abandoned warehouse that Charles Mason directed John to is located on the outskirts of the city proper, about two miles out. The secret tunnel system of the Hunter's Den (the home base of operations of the late Huntress) cannot be used in this case since the tunnel only covers the main body of Gateway City.

Going full throttle the Tomahawk was able to break the sound barrier, showcasing Atlas tech at its finest in terms of vehicle modification. All the vehicles back at the Den were heavily modified John noticed early on. John did not even have to worry about traffic or whatever the traffic lights were signalling since he could just go on by. For some strange reason the police don't give chase around Gateway City if you prove to be too much of a hassle to go after.

And just like that, John reached the vicinity of the abandoned warehouse within a few minutes. He parks the Tomahawk at the back behind some bushes, having gone around the warehouse upon approaching it to avoid being detected by the kidnapper. The abandoned warehouse was pretty standard fare, just imagine one off the top of your head that would not look out of place in a typical movie set.

Getting off his motorbike and making sure to bring all his gear with him, John quietly makes a move for the rear entrance of the warehouse. Most of the time John was indeed a superstitious sort, it comes with the territory of his experience with the supernatural. So when it started raining heavily with lightning and thunder going off in a radius around the general area of the warehouse, John was sure it was the making of some sort of magical plot. In response to this revelation the retired hitman steeled his nerves in trepidation, gripping tightly to his assault rifle, magic meant an increased rating in lethality as far as he was concerned.

The interior of the abandoned warehouse was pretty sparse. The sections John passed by had rooms filled with random junk but not much to be honest. No working electricity as far as he could tell so it made the source of light in the distance rather suspect. Keeping to the shadows and steadying his breathing as he gets closer and closer to the light John can hear the telltale murmurs of someone talking in the distance.

John tried to stay as calm as possible when he noticed the shadows dancing blatantly to no apparent music, the magic in the air seemed to be having some sort of bleeding effect on the surrounding dark areas.

It made for quite the unsettling sight during this little adventure of John's. The would be superhero was doing his absolute best to steady his breathing and ignoring the rapid beating of his heart.

Within minutes, John had made it to the central area hub of the warehouse where dozens of cages were located. Inside these cages were what he suspected to be all of the missing children and animals. A cursory glance proved that all of them were emaciated and trembling from the cold and no doubt the fear they felt from the somber background.

The cages were settled in a circular formation and at the center of it all was a cloaked figure who was speaking esoteric lines in what John could only assume was Latin with his hands raised up, a glowing crystal sphere suspended above him with an ominous red glow.

John had seen enough. It would appear he was dealing with some type of warlock character given the dark setting he had come across. There was no doubt in John's mind that he was dealing with some sort of dark magic ritual.

Making use of the element of surprise, John aimed with the assault rifle for the torso section of the warlock in such a way that none of the kids and animals would get hit and timed it just right in order to fire the gun at the same time as thunder struck in the background, muffling the sound of automatic gunfire.

The warlock rounded on John, surprised and made a blocking gesture with his hands. And instantaneously a crystal wall cluster formed in front of the warlock's hands which were positioned by his chest area, glowing the same ominous red as the magic sphere it spawned from.

"Ah, John Wick!" The warlock called out. "I was warned by the Heralds of the Abyss that you may see fit to interfere with my little experiment."

John instantly wondered who the fuck the Heralds of the Abyss were and how in the world they could have possibly predicted him getting involved in anything but he had better things to do. Like keep shooting at the freaking warlock.

Alas, no matter where John aimed at the warlock's body, a crystal shield would form and block all of the bullets.

"It's useless, Mister Wick! My defense spell is too perfect, you only delay the inevitable." Clearly, the warlock had complete faith in the fact his crystal shield would hold against any sort of onslaught John could dish out.

It was as John was reloading his assault rifle that things took a turn for the worse, the warlock gestured with his hands and spoke out some sort of Latin incantation and within mere moments creatures made of shadow itself were conjured by the dozens. Humanoid in shape but with razor sharp claws on their hands. John recognized these monsters, War Shadows were what they were called if he was not mistaken.

Changing tactics, John holstered his assault rifle and brought out the tonfa and dagger. If projectiles were of no use against the warlock's crystal shield, then getting up close and personal was ideal for now.

John dashed as fast as he could towards the center area where the warlock was at. Three of the War Shadows reached him on the way there, he ducked and parried their blows before striking fatally with a stab of his dagger to where a heart would be on a human and a swing of his tonfa to the neck area and so on before reaching the warlock.

It was just a guess that the crystal shield would not block his physical attacks but it paid off, it seemed the crystal shield was a spell to protect from projectiles set on automatic response. John made to stab the warlock on the shoulder but was blocked by the warlock grabbing onto his forearm and the same happened when he made to swing the stun tonfa into the warlock's abdomen.

The two grappled for several moments, bumping into some of the several dozen War Shadows all the while trying to achieve dominance in the exchange. In a moment of desperation John headbutted the warlock which in turn dazed the magic user and John powered through and dragged the warlock far and away from the encirclement of cages.

The warlock then made a conscious effort to summon a red crystal from the main sphere in the shape of a jagged arrow and fired it point blank into John's abdomen. The reactive polymer body armor hardened upon the impact and held true but John had the wind knocked out of him from the sheer force of the blow. The hit sent him flying away from the warlock by a few meters and for sure would leave a really bad bruise later on. Thankfully though, no ribs were broken by the hit as best as John could tell.

Both John and the warlock were now pretty far away from all of the cages so John felt confident he could use his assault rifle with impunity to deal with the War Shadows. John blocks a claw strike with the body of the rifle, shoves the War Shadow and then blasts its brains out point blank. Or at least, where brain matter should have been kept on a more mundane opponent. All that came out of the living shadow creature were mere flecks of shadow.

Then John makes a rapid full 360 degree spin for a few rounds all the while shooting his assault rifle since the remaining War Shadows decided to rush him in a circular formation. All of the War Shadows got shredded by the onslaught of the assault rifle. They all dissipated upon death. John locks eyes with the warlock as he reloads the assault rifle. John is now on his last extra clip for the assault rifle.

The warlock then begins to do a slow clap. "Well done, Mr. Wick. It would seem that tales of your prowess in combat were not exaggerated." The would be superhero could only grunt in response. He started to wonder why this warlock liked to talk so much but he would take the moments of respite for what they were.

Stowing away the assault rifle once more, John drew out his dagger. In response the warlock conjured a crystal dagger spawning out from the red sphere. It would appear that both combatants wanted to end this with a knife fight.

"I shall give you the honor of knowing the name of the one that shall kill you, Mister Wick." The warlock decided to talk some more as he and John Wick approached each other slowly. "I am the glorious warlock, Adinaxx Darkshore!"

"Okay then, Adinaxx. I'll keep this simple. You're going down for kidnapping all those children and animals. This sick experiment of yours is over!" John Wick declared with as much righteousness as he could.

The retired hitman then dashed towards the now named Adinaxx Darkshore and started stabbing and slicing with a vengeance.

With just as much tenacity the warlock was able to meet John Wick's every move, blow for blow. Then, Adinaxx summoned a second crystal dagger and scored a stab at John's left leg. The aspiring superhero went down to one knee at the hit but was able to haphazardly block the follow up stab from the first crystal dagger and then out of desperation, John was able to land a debilitating punch right at Adinaxx's solar plexus which drove the warlock back.

Fighting through the pain of the leg wound, John Wick takes hold of the crystal dagger that the warlock left lodged in the leg and pulls it out with a loud grunt of pain and tossed it away. John then proceeds to rip off a section of his undershirt and wraps it tightly around the leg wound. Gingerly, he stands up to his full height and gets ready to engage the warlock once more.

Adinaxx then leaps into the air, his remaining crystal dagger poised to strike at John Wick, all the while yelling a battle cry. John responds by first drawing his 1911 and shoots the warlock right in the face several times. As it turns out, the automatic crystal shielding only responded to lethal types of projectiles and could differentiate between what was and wasn't lethal. Lucky little loophole for John as it were.

When the warlock had reached John he was still covering his face in pain and John was able to score a stab wound in the gut. John made sure to not hit anything too vital and then pulled out his dagger.

Adinaxx staggers back several paces while holding on to his gut wound. "This isn't over, Mister Wick! You cannot stop what is to come! Fear harvesting has opened the path!" John didn't really care for the ramblings of a defeated man but he paid attention just in case. "Till next time, Mister Wick!" With that last sentence as a goodbye, Adinaxx summoned the main body of the crystal that was at the center of the magic ritual and then was gone in a flash of light. He had teleported away.

Panting heavily and overly aware of all his accumulated damage from his previous escapade of taking down a whole mob up to everything with the warlock, John was regretting not taking more time to recuperate before beginning his jaunt into superheroism.

Still, at least now he could get to freeing those kids and animals. After freeing them from those cages he led them outside of the warehouse, thankfully the abnormal rain had stopped once the warlock had teleported away, and then John contacted the authorities regarding the missing children and animals.

Once all of the children and animals were taken care of, John went back to the site of the ritual. As a precaution, to prevent other magic users from getting the idea of harnessing fear energy to power their magic, John proceeded to lay down all of his C4 and then detonated it all remotely once he was back outside. The explosion caused a fire that would wipe out any trace of what happened in there.

John then proceeded to go back to his Tomahawk motorcycle and went on his merry way back to the den.

The retired hitman had a lot to think about. There was a dark guild of magic users called the Heralds of the Abyss that had the power of foreseeing future events, evidenced by their knowledge that tonight would happen, and they seem to be in the business of harnessing fear energy. Nothing good is planned where they may be involved as far as John could tell.

John needed to be ready to face them, he needed to make the necessary preparations. First things first though, John needed time to heal.

At least he had that date with Moxxi next Saturday, something to look forward to amidst all these stirrings in the magical side of things.

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 **And so I'll stop here for now. Sorry for the short chapter but I think I'll stick to this much for chapter length so that I can update more quickly. I hope everyone enjoyed the action. Next time, John enjoys himself on his date with Moxxi. Take care, everyone.**


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